Browns QB Shedeur Sanders Gets Big News on Starting Chances
The Cleveland Browns look likely to make a significant change to the starting lineup this week, and multiple players will benefit to one degree or another if that happens.
In question is the job of QB1, which currently belongs to veteran
Until now, Stefanski has been quick to say Flacco is the starter and has remained adamant about that decision. Such was not how he addressed the 40-year-old’s status in the team’s most recent press conference.
Scott Petrak of BrownsZone asked Stefanski directly if the team planned to keep Flacco in a starting role when it travels to London to play the Minnesota Vikings next weekend.
“I understand the question, Scott,” Stefanski said. “We have to play better as an offense. We have to coach better on offense. It’s not about one person. There are so many things that we need to do better and obviously quarterback included. But this is not about one person.”
The immediate follow-up question involved a request for clarification on whether that meant Cleveland will go with Flacco on Sunday.
“Yeah, my focus is on making sure this offense plays better,” Stefanski responded.
Stefanski’s unwillingness to confirm Flacco as the starter is a strong indicator that he may not be QB1 six days from now. And if Cleveland benches the veteran, it is almost certain that rookie
However, that also puts fellow rookie signal-caller Shedeur Sanders one injury or a couple of bad performances away from the NFL shot for which he has recently clamored.
Shedeur Sanders Made Clear He’s Ready to Start in NFL Now
GettyCleveland Browns quarterback Shedeur Sanders.
Sanders made waves earlier this week with comments he uttered during a locker room interview about his readiness to start, and how he believes he stacks up to others who already have that opportunity.
“I know if you see the quarterback play in the league right now, I know I’m capable of doing better than that,” Sanders said.
Sanders also broached the topic of whether Cleveland should be playing him already.
“I don’t think playing or not playing is in my hands,” Sanders replied. “Based on the situation, if things happen, if things pan out where I play, then I’ll be out there and I’ll be ready to play. I’m ready to play right now.”
Browns Insider Says Shedeur Sanders ‘Likely’ to Play During Rookie Season
GettyCleveland Browns quarterback Shedeur Sanders.
Some conspiracy theories surfaced online suggesting that perhaps Sanders was trying to push his way out of Cleveland ahead of the trade deadline. An appearance by Sanders’ father,
“How in the world can somebody fault [Shedeur] for saying or thinking, ‘Why in the world would I go back up Lamar [Jackson] for 10 more years?’” Deion Sanders said
However, Cleveland has made no indication that Sanders is, or will be, on the trade block at any point in 2025. And Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com reported Monday that her sources indicate the fifth-round pick is likely going to play this year.
“When the Browns hand the reins to Gabriel, Sanders may or may not be the backup depending on the timing, but he’s also likely to see some action this season,”
Thus, Stefanski’s reaction on Monday to questions about Flacco, and the educated speculation that Gabriel is about to become the starter that subsequently followed, represents a massive step for Sanders with regards to his prospects of getting on the field for the first time as a member of the NFL.
Denver Broncos QB Bo Nix and His Wife Izzy Smoke: Fast Facts You Need to Know
It’s been a quick ascent for Denver Broncos second year quarterback Bo Nix, who went from being the last of 6 quarterbacks taken in the first round of the 2024 NFL draft to runner-up for NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year.
Nix and the Broncos have high expectations in 2025 thanks to an elite defense featuring cornerback and NFL Defensive Player of the Year Patrick Surtain II and because of how well Nix played as a rookie.
Nix, 25 years old, comes from a longtime Southern football family. His grandfather, Conrad Nix, was a high school football coach for 43 years in Alabama, Tennessee and Georgia while Nix’s father, Patrick Nix, was a 3-year starter at quarterback at Auburn, including an undefeated season in 1993.
Patrick Nix was also Bo Nix’s head coach at Pinson Valley (Alabama) High School, where Nix played with younger brother and current Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Tez Johnson.
Nix followed his father’s footsteps at Auburn, where he started for 3 seasons and was the SEC Freshman of the Year in 2019. It was also where he met his future wife, Auburn cheerleader Izzy Smoke, before he transferred to Oregon for his final 2 seasons in 2022 and 2023.
With the Ducks, Nix rewrote the NCAA record books in 2 seasons, going 22-5 as the starter before he and Smoke headed to Denver on a 4-year, $18.6 million rookie contract.
“The day I met Bo, he told me about this God-sized dream of his. I will never stop praising the Lord for His faithfulness or have enough words to express how proud I am of you, Bo,” Smoke wrote on
Here’s some more facts about Nix and Smoke, who got married on July 2, 2022, in Alpine, Alabama:
Alabama Natives Who Met at Auburn
Smoke is a Birmingham, Alabama, native — just 2.5 hours northwest of Phenix City — and she married Nix shortly after she graduated from Auburn with a Bachelor of Science in Exercise Science with minors in Psychology and Sport Coaching in May 2022.
The couple got engaged in September 2021.
After the wedding, Smoke and Nix packed up the U-Haul and headed west, traveling 2,600 miles across the country to Eugene, Oregon, where he joined 36-year-old first year head coach and former Georgia defensive coordinator Dan Lanning.
The move to Oregon — and the move 2 years later to Denver — left both husband and wife still trying to bring all of their stuff with them from Alabama.
“When Bo and I got married back in 2022, we moved across the country to Oregon and left all of our wedding gifts unopened in Alabama,” Smoke told Mestiza New York in 2024. “I am so excited to finally open them up and make a house a home in Denver.”
Unique Way Couple Spent Draft Day
Instead of heading to Detroit and getting drafted in front of 275,000 NFL fans at Detroit’s Hart Plaza, Nix and Smoke chose to watch the draft at his family’s home in Alabama surrounded by family and friends.
When Nix answered the call from Broncos general manager George Paton to tell him he was going to be drafted, the first question he asked was “You want to go win a Super Bowl?”
